Chef's Challenge - Mark Best

By June Cowle (Producer, Weekends)

Executive Chef from Marque, Mark Best takes this week's Chef's Challenge with Simon Marnie. Mark serves up some angasie oysters followed by pan fried red spot whiting with crushed minted broad beans and garlic. For main course it's a French style leg of new season lamb with roasted red onion and fresh garlic followed by a compote of rhubarb with slow stewed quinces.

WEEKENDS: Find more stories and information about Simon Marnie and the Weekend show.

Mark started work as an electrician in the gold mines of Western Australia before starting his culinary career at the Macleay Street Bistro, in 1990.

In the fourth year of his apprenticeship he was awarded the Josephine Pignolet Award for 'Best Up and Coming Chef' in NSW. That same year he was runner up for the 'Oliver C. Schoal' Scholarship, which lead to his promotion to head chef.

By 1995 he had opened his own restaurant with his wife Valarie, Peninsula Bistro, but by 1998, he decided to continue his study of French Cuisine and moved to France where he worked at a number of top restaurants including 'L'Arpége' in Paris, and Alain Passard's three Michelin Star establishment.

His time overseas fuelled his desire to open his next restaurant, and soon opened Marque. Five months after opening he was awarded Two Chefs Hats in the 2000 and then again in 2001, as well as a National Finalist for restaurant of the year in the 'Australian Gourmet Traveller'.

The success continued with Marque Restaurant being named "Best French Restaurant" in 2003 and in 2004 where they gained a three hat status which they maintain in 2013.

Mark also took out the Chef of the year award in 2006 and 2010.

The list from the Providores this week:

Seafood with Andrew Boyd

Andrew was excited as this week had all the elements combine to make for perfect conditions at the fish market - good weather, high supply and low prices make Andrew a happy boy with supplies from NT, WA, Qld and NZ.

Prawns are problematic with low supply and high prices, lobster are very expensive as are mud crabs but spanner crabs are great value.

Oysters - rocks from Sth coast NSW, pacifics and angasies from SA are all excellent.

Fruit and Veg with Matt Brown

Spring is on and Matt is excited with the range of produce - local asparagus, NT mangoes, strawberries from NSW and Qld, blueberries have fallen in price. Citrus such as mandarins, oranges and blood oranges are very good but limes are very expensive.

New season grapes from Qld and look for a new melon called the Spanish melon, it has a skin like a crocodile but eats beautifully.

Quinces are finishing, rhubarb is great, baby parsnips are good, and there are some great tomatoes if you search them out - Johnny lovebite ox hearts, heirloom and cherry. There's great- green garlic, fennel, coloured carrots, beetroot, broadbeans, in fact beans are all good.

Keep your eyes out for fresh water chestnuts from Darwin, Matt hasn't seen them for nearly seven years and they are mind-blowing.

Also Matt is anticipating the fresh morels from Victoria which are due to arrive next week.

Meat with Terry Wright

Its BBQ cuts this week - new season lamb has started, grass fed beef is fantastic, and Berkshire pig are all in demand.

Demand for the slow cooked cuts is falling a little such as ox cheek, ox tails and shanks and game is starting to wind up for the year.